DETROIT — It has been almost three years since the Maple Leafs laced up the blades for a regular-season game at the Joe Louis Arena.

For Nikolai Kulemin and Luke Schenn, it almost seems like yesterday.

As both players walked into The Joe on Friday for practice in preparation for Saturday’s tilt against the mighty Red Wings, each had vivid memories of that special night of Oct. 9, 2008.

On that particular evening, both players were about to participate in their first career NHL games. But before the puck was dropped, they stood in awe and joined the capacity crowd in watching the Wings’ 2008 Stanley Cup banner being hoisted to the rafters.

Once the festivities had concluded, the two teams kicked off the 2008-09 regular season.

And, in the end, the Leafs shocked the hockey world, posting a 3-2 victory to spoil the Red Wings opening night party.

The deciding goal was scored by Kulemin, whose breakaway tally in the third period caught the Wings off-guard.

“I was thinking about that (today),” Kulemin admitted. “I’ll never forget it. My first game and I scored the winning goal against the Stanley Cup champions.

“It was an amazing feeling.”

For Schenn, the best was yet to come.

As the highly touted rookie was walking to the team bus after the game, coach Ron Wilson pulled him aside.

“Luke, I’d like you to meet another Saskatchewan native like you,” Wilson said.

The man Schenn was introduced to?

The legendary Gordie Howe.

“I’ll always remember that night,” Schenn said. “How could you not?

“I remember going out for my first shift. The Wings had Chris Osgood in goal, Nick Lidstrom and Brian Rafalski on defence, Henrik Zetterberg, Pavel Datsyuk and Tomas Holmstrom up front. I had just signed my rookie contract a couple of days earlier. I looked over at those guys and asked myself: “Do I belong out here?”